| ■Tokyo National Research
Institute for Cultural Properties |
■Center for Conservation
Science |
| ■Department of Art Research,
Archives and Information Systems |
■Japan Center for
International Cooperation in Conservation |
| ■Department of Intangible
Cultural Heritage |
|
Lecture of local history course 2022 at the Ibaraki City Cultural Properties Museum
The Ibaraki City Cultural Properties Museum, Osaka Prefecture, holds an annual local history course of six lectures. KOBAYASHI Koji, a senior fellow, was invited for the first lecture of 2022 and gave a lecture titled Three Seigan and One Zushi: What We Can Know from the Four Portable Christian Shrines Left in Sendaiji and Shimo’otowa Areas on July 16th at the museum.
The Sendaiji and Shimo’otowa, located in the northern parts of Ibaraki City, are villages in which many residents converted to Christianity when Justo Takayama Ukon, a Christian lord, also known as Dom Justo Takayama, took over the areas in the late 16th century. Their religion survived over a period of fierce repression of Christianity during the Edo period until the modern period. Thus, they are widely known as “hidden” Christian villages. Their Christian culture is unique as they passed down many varieties of Christian relics in high volumes. “Miracle” is never overstated because such varieties of relics have not remained in any other hidden Christian areas or villages in Japan. It is well known that the extremely famous painting St. Francis Xavier, Important Cultural Property housed in Kobe City Museum, is among them.
I have studied various Christian objects passed down in these villages, especially seigan, Christian shrines which are containers for holy Christian paintings including images of Christ or Madonna and Child, to explore the reality of Christian belief in Japan. The seigan passed down in these areas are simply coated with black urushi lacquer. This fact and their history obviously show that they were made for domestic believers. Conversely, seigan, categorized as Namban lacquer with the same shape but with gorgeous makie and mother-of-pearl decorated, which were ordered to Japanese workshops by Europeans for export to Europe and Latin America, are also recognized. These two types of seigan show distinct differences despite sharing the same function as Christian objects. The sacred paintings stored in these seigan are associated with its frame with a western conjunction structure, supposed to be made of ebony, and with its frame decorated with makie and made in Japan respectively. These facts imply important questions regarding their backgrounds and manufacturing techniques. Conversely, the zushi exhibits an ivory-made crucifixion on the black cross possibly made of ebony. However, either this crucifixion or zushi have attracted almost no attentions so far and neither their original manufacturing place nor date are yet identified.
This lecture featured the reality of these seigan and zushi; and the ways of Christian acceptance and its religion in Japan from the Momoyama period to the early Edo period, which were revealed through the studies of these seigan and zushi. Approximately 40 participants who were selected by lot during another peak of the COVID-19 pandemic enthusiastically asked questions. I sensed a great interest in Christian culture and history during this time.
The Christian culture and related relics passed down in these areas are precious and unique historic milestones. I would like to further conduct this research and disseminate the outcomes.
Introduction in the conference room
Explanation about the auction catalogue digital archive
The Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) introduced the guidance for TOBUNKEN Library with 14 graduate students of Gakushuin University (led by Prof. SARAI Mai and Prof. SHIMAO Arata) on July 1st. At the beginning of this guidance session, KIKKAWA Hideki explained how to use the library and how the collection was developed in the conference room on the second floor of TOBUNKEN. We then moved to the library and its stack rooms, where our staff introduced various materials including the Auction Catalogue Digital Archive, investigational photographs of cultural properties, and auction catalogues. The participants handled the digital archives, held the books and photos, listened to the explanations, and actively asked questions from the viewpoint of how they could utilize them for their own research.
The Archive Section of the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems has a mission to collect, organize, and conserve materials concerning cultural properties and prepare an easily accessible and effectively usable environment for experts and students working on cultural properties. As a part of this mission, we continue to actively hold guidance sessions. If you want to participate in the sessions, please submit your request with reference to “TOBUNKEN Library Guidance for undergraduate/graduate students and museum staffs” (Japanese only).
Workshop flyer
The Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC) in Norwich, UK, is a renowned center for the study of Japanese arts and culture in Europe and well-known to Western stakeholders. Since July 2013, SISJAC and the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) have entered into a collaborative project on “Shaping the Fundamentals of Research on Japanese Art.”
On July 8th and 9th, 2022, TSUDA Tetsuei, a visiting researcher at the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems in TOBUNKEN, on a sabbatical in the UK, participated in an online workshop on “Absence, Presence, and Materiality: Refiguring Japanese Religious Art and Culture,” organized by SISJAC. On July 9th, he delivered an oral presentation titled Reinterpreting Esoteric Buddhist Sculpture in the Nara period (8th century).
This presentation demonstrated that esoteric Buddhism had already been introduced and accepted in the latter half of the Nara period (8th century) before Kūkai introduced it in Japan in the Heian period (early 9th century). Vidyā-rājā (J. Myōō) statues had already been sculpted and one of them survives even today. Furthermore, this workshop was conducted as per Japan standard time: it commenced late at night and concluded early morning in Europe and the USA. Nevertheless, 72 people attended on both days, not only from Europe and the USA but also from Russia and Taiwan. It was evident that numerous researchers worldwide were interested in Japanese religions and culture.
On July 11th, as SISJAC had asked TSUDA to provide descriptions of Japanese artworks (sculptures and crafts) from the Jōmon to the Medieval period for catalogs and panels at the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts in the University of East Anglia (UEA), which has jurisdiction over SISJAC, TSUDA and Miss MATSUBA Ryoko, a member of the SISJAC, surveyed the museum’s collection and exchanged views. This collection is almost unknown in Japan, but it contains fine examples of Buddhist art, including a gilt bronze Buddha from the Nara period (8th century) and a seated bodhisattva from the mid-Heian period (10th century), although they are small in size. In addition, a few works can also be checked against the TOBUNKEN’s digital archive of auction catalogue and sold art works.
On the same day, since 14:00 hours, Mr. ITO Tsuyoshi, minister at the embassy of Japan in London, inspected these exhibits, and TSUDA delivered gallery talks on these artworks with Miss MATSUBA Ryoko. The minister listened attentively as he observed the artworks.
Explanation on how the focal distance of lens make differences
Photographing practice: lighting to a target object using an umbrella
The documentation of cultural properties is fundamental to obtain the necessary information for research, conservation, and utilization. Photography, a type of documentation method, is mandatory to record visual information, including colors and shapes. Meanwhile, many factors need to be considered for photographing to record accurate information.
With this background, the Cultural Properties Information Section of the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information System held the seminar mentioned in the title targeting local government officers and museum staff involved in cultural property protection in Hokkaido, at Hokkaido Museum of Northern Peoples (Abashiri City) co-sponsored of the Museum and the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) on June 2nd, 2022. Protection measures were taken against COVID-19 including face masks, social distancing, and air ventilation.
In the morning, lectures were delivered about the purposes of documenting cultural properties and the photographing. In the afternoon, at first, the methods of inventorying cultural property and their photographs were introduced using case studies. Then, the appropriate ways to manage lighting and other photographing tips were explained. As a practical exercise, all participants made reflector boards by attaching wrinkled aluminum foil to recycled styrene boards which had been used for signboards for exhibitions. Then, the participants photographed a carved wooden bear kept in the Museum, using their own cameras by modulating lighting. At the end, a Q&A session was conducted on photographing and inventorying photos as well as cultural property items.
Handling shadows is challenging for many people in photographing cultural properties. This seminar addressed the appropriate methods to include natural shadow in natural directions using one light only by reflecting light toward appropriate positions for the characteristics of cultural properties or art objects using hand-made reflection boards and inexpensive equipment. Furthermore, several ways to organize and list photographs using the basic functions of Windows and Excel were introduced as we received numerous questions about this matter. We strived our best to make this seminar as practical as possible.
This workshop was held this time after two years since it was originally planned due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We thank to the staff at the Hokkaido Museum of Northern Peoples and participants for their patience and precious opinions.
TANAKA Ichimatsu Materials
Caricatures of the Japanese-Russo War, Fudeno Mani Mani (as I like) (TANAKA Ichimatsu)
DOI Tsugiyoshi Materials
Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) preserves and utilizes research notebooks and meeting documents written by researchers—including ex-employees—in addition to books and photographs. On our website, we have published major notebooks from the materials of TANAKA Ichimatsu (1895–1983) owned by TOBUNKEN and the materials of DOI Tsugiyoshi (1906–1991) owned by the University Library of Kyoto Institute of Technologies. These were a part of the outcome of “Study on Record and Evaluation of Japanese Art – Preservation and Utilization of Survey Report of Artwork” that was carried out for three years from FY2019 as JSPS Grand-in Aid for Scientific Research (B) (JP19H01217).
Among TANAKA Ichimatsu’s materials, lecture notebooks from Tokyo Imperial University, artwork research notebooks from 1923–1930, and sketch books from his elementary school and junior high school days between 1905–1914 were introduced. TANAKA found delight in drawing pictures from his childhood and continued to exercise to immediately depict what he saw; consequently, he mastered his ability. These experiences contributed to his later works as an art historian. Over half a century, TANAKA made remarkable achievements at the center of administration for cultural properties. He evaluated a large amount of art objects. As a result, he drove the research of Japanese painting history.
Among DOI Tsugiyoshi’s materials, his main research notebooks, lecture notebooks from Kyoto Imperial University between 1928–1972, and a travel diary with haikus (Japanese poem) and sketches from 1947 were introduced. He observed details of art objects minutely through not only document investigation but onsite investigation as well. Based on these investigations, he discerned painters and reevaluated those whose names were passed down in temple histories. He made revolutionary contributions to the research of early modern painting history.
The research notebooks of TANAKA and DOI from the pre-war period show us how they recorded shapes and expressions that they witnessed at a time when photos could not be taken as easily as they can now, and how they transformed their accumulated records into artwork evaluation. These materials recorded by their activities can be also called modern materials related to the art pieces during the Taishō and Shōwa eras. We hope they are used extensively as research materials. Some sketches are certainly visually entertaining. Please visit our website and enjoy them. https://www.tobunken.go.jp/researchnote/202203/
The seminar
Q&A session
Standing Yakushi Nyorai in the Jingoji Temple in Kyoto has attracted attention from the early stages of Japanese art history and has subsequently stimulated many discussions. The statue has an extraordinary appearance and provenance and was made at the request of Wake no Kiyomaro (733–799). Two topics are primarily debated: which temple the statue was originally set in, the Jinganji or Takaosanji Temple, both of which were later combined into the Jingoji Temple, and the background against which this statue was created. The theory by Dr. SARAI Mai has recently gained widespread support, namely, that Wake no Kiyomaro had the statue created as the principal image of the Jinganji Temple responding to a request by the Deity Hachiman which required the Buddhist power to compete against his political enemy, Dōkyō (?–772).
The seminar was held by the Department on May 30th, 2022. Dr. HARA Hirofumi of Keio Shiki Senior High School conducted a presentation titled The Purpose of Making Standing Yakushi Nyorai and the Deity Hachiman Keka. Dr. HARA claimed that the statue was originally set in the Jinganji Temple, and then pointed out based on various materials that the story of the competition between the Deity Hachiman and Dōkyō was a fiction created in a later period. He then concluded that the statue is the principal image for Keka by the Deity Hachiman and was created at the private wish of Wake no Kiyomaro.
This seminar was held in person and online in TOBUNKEN. We invited Dr. SARAI Mai of Gakushuin University as a commentator, and Prof. NAGAOKA Ryūsaku of Tohoku University. Other researchers specializing in the history of sculpture also participated. Various opinions were expressed in a lively discussion during the Q&A session. This presentation provided a new perspective on the studies of Standing Yakushi Nyorai of the Jingoji Temple. We expect further active discussions.
Presentation about Noh masks
Noh mask and Senmen (fan surface) are important study objects related to religion and celebrations from ancient times, from the viewpoint of not only Japanese art history, but also Japanese cultural history. OTANI Yuki (Research assistant of the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems) presented her research titled a Consideration on the Beshimi Mask Owned by Aizu Museum.
This beshimi mask is from the Inaba family, the lord of the Usuki domain in Bungo Province. It has some inscriptions, such as “made by Sakai Sōzaemon”. The okina mask owned by the Nagataki Hakusan Shrine in Gifu and the okina mask owned by the Itsukushima Shrine in Hiroshima are objects related to the beshimi mask from the Inaba family. It is interesting that they were devoted to the same petitioner of the beshimi in a similar period. OTANI studied the form of these beshimi masks as masks for devotion in the Muromachi period and considered them to be made in the transitional period to the Chorei Beshimi type. In this presentation, we invited Mr. ASAMI Ryusuke of the Tokyo National Museum as a commentator. He talked about the importance and challenges of the Noh masks study. He also pointed out the issues of regionality and acceptance of this mask’s craftsmanship.
Following this, ONO Mayumi (Head of the Japanese and East Asian Art History Section) conducted a presentation titled Ōgiya Sōkyū, a painter mentioned in Kanemikyōki. Kanemikyōki is a diary of YOSHIDA Kanemi (1535-1610), a shinkan (priest) of the Yoshida Shrine in Kyoto. It is a precious historical source that tells us of the movements of court nobles and sengoku warlords. Among the people related to YOSHIDA, she focused on Kanō Sōkyū (Ōgiya Sōkyū), a painter mentioned more than 10 times in this diary. She found a relationship between court nobles and Ōgiya that was unknown earlier. Kanemi presented senmen made by Sōkyū to the houses of Oda, Toyotomi, Maeda, and others. Furthermore, YOSHIDA built a close relationship with Sōkyū by inviting him to dinner and banquets. With these facts, ONO added a new consideration to the importance and role of the painter Ōgiya.
Photographic survey
Replica of Ekin byōbu displayed at Ekingura
Twenty-three byōbu (folding screens) painted by Hirose Kinzō (1812–76), known as Ekin, have been passed down in Akaoka Town, Konan City, Kochi Prefecture. They are certified by Kochi Prefecture as Tangible Cultural Properties for Protection. They are usually stored in Ekingura (Ekin Museum), which is a facility for storage and exhibition. Ekin byōbu are attractive because the dramatic scenes of popular kabuki plays were depicted with a dynamic composition using vivid color pigments. Eighteen of them were originally devoted to the Suruda Hachimangū Shrine located in the north of Akaoka Town. They have been shown at the Suruda Hachimangū Grand Festival since the end of Edo era. In addition, the Ekin Festival has been held in Akaoka Town by local people since 1977 at the shopping district, where they are displayed. Ekin byōbu are popular as special cultural properties that share the same regional background, though the festivals were halted for the last two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Five byōbu were discolored due to an accident in 2010. The Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) investigated how to conserve and restore them. Additionally, measures were taken to stabilize them. (Please refer to our monthly report: https://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/ekatudo/246667.html) Later, a project for the conservation and restoration of the other 18 byōbu, which have deteriorated over time, has been started by the Ekingura Management Committee and the Akaoka Ekin Byōbu Preservation Association. TOBUNKEN has been investigating the painting materials of Ekin byōbu along with this project. We visited Ekingura on April 15th and 16th, 2022, and investigated them with high-resolution color photography of the 18 byōbu, whose restoration has been completed. All byōbu will be fully restored by the end of FY 2022. A research report is planned for publication after the completion.
Letter from KUBOTA Shigeko, a pioneer in video art, to MIKI Tamon, enclosing photos of exhibited artworks at her first personal exhibition (December 1963 at Naiqua Gallery, Tokyo)
The Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) made three archives of documents, the Muramatsu Gallery Papers, TAKAMI Akihiko Papers, and MIKI Tamon Papers, available as a research outcome of the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems in FY 2021.
The Muramatsu Gallery Papers consist of their exhibition materials (including scrapbooks of exhibition invitation postcards and photo albums to record exhibitions) from 1966 to 2009. The TAKAMI Akihiko Papers are the exhibition materials of art galleries from 1990s to 2000s. The MIKI Tamon Papers are a group of materials including exhibition invitation postcards from the first half of the 1960s.
Surveys of personal exhibitions at art galleries constitute an important basic process for studying post-war contemporary artists. However, investigating what artworks and how they were exhibited is extremely difficult. This is because art magazines and newspapers rarely published personal exhibitions of budding, but still unknown artists. Therefore, it is only possible to specify the venues and schedules of exhibitions through publication media.
The three archives being released include many photos of exhibitions and exhibited artworks. These act as support tools for researchers to overcome “difficulties” in investigating contemporary arts, as indicated above. These archives can be browsed at the TOBUNKEN Library (advanced reservation required). We hope that many researchers utilize these archives to advance their research.
*TOBUNKEN Library Visitor’s Guide (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/joho/english/library/library_e.html)
Information on the archives is available at the bottom of the Japanese page (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/joho/japanese/library/library.html (Japanese only).)
Seminar on MATSUZAWA Yutaka Archive at TOBUNKEN
The Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) held the Seminar on MATSUZAWA Yutaka Archives – the 9th Seminar held by the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems both in-person and online. TOBUNKEN invited experts in charge of recording and organizing the activities of MATSUZAWA Yutaka (1922-2006), a pioneer of conceptual arts, and experts and researchers who work on finding new value in these materials.
This seminar is also a part of a research project, “Research and Compilation of Materials on Modern and Contemporary Art”, and a Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, “Study on Art Collective in Post-1968: Based on Matsuzawa Yutaka’s Archive” (principle investigator: KIKKAWA Hideki).
The following presentations were provided: in order of presentation:
The 100 anniversary of birth, MATSUZAWA YUTAKA: From the Investigation by the Art Museum to the Exhibition by Ms. KINOUCHI Mayumi and Ms. FURUIE Mitsuha (Nagano Prefectural Art Museum),
MATSUZAWA Yutaka’s Exchange with Latin American Arts – Based on the Materials of CAyC (Centro de Arte y Comunicación) by Dr. INOUE Emiko (Hunter College, the City University of New York), and
About the Data Center for Contemporary Art (DCCA): Archive Project by MATSUZAWA Yutaka by KIKKAWA Hideki.
After the above presentations, the four presenters and seminar participants (11 in-person and 33 online) exchanged opinions. The discussion involved people from General Incorporated Foundation – Matsuzawa Yutaka Psi Room Foundation (Executive director: Mr. MATSUZAWA Haruo), artists with direct relationships with MATSUZAWA Yutaka, and related parties from museums and archives. Topics varied from the significances and possibilities of the MATSUZAWA Yutaka Archives as research materials to challenges for archive preservation.
We at TOBUNKEN explore and fulfill our mission to pass down cultural property archives, not only the MATSUZAWA Yutaka Archives, recognized as valuable research materials that lack a guaranteed of long-term conservation for the next generations.
Database screen showing the ability to refer museum information from links on the screen
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic affecting the world has had a huge impact on museum exhibitions. First, museums across Japan were forced to temporarily close because of a governmental request in February 2020 to voluntarily refrain from large-scale events. Following, repeated declarations of a State of Emergency and Quasi-State of Emergency forced museums to cancel and postpone many exhibitions. The Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) has been collecting information about exhibitions held in Japan since 1935 and stores them in a public database (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/archives/information-search/art-exhibitons/?lang=en). Since May 2020, TOBUNKEN started collecting information of exhibitions impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which it published as a database (Japanese only.) (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/exhibition_covid19)
This database tabulates the status of exhibitions handling cultural properties, including cancelation, postponement, and early closure primarily for museum members of the Japan Association of Museums (https://www.j-muse.or.jp/en/index.php). Before the pandemic, the information was collected based on printing materials such as leaflets and catalogues, annual calendars, and museums’ websites. However, the information is updated on a daily basis under the pandemic’s unpredictable situation; to every extent possible, we collected data widely from SNS such as Twitter and Facebook in addition to museum websites, including the duration of temporary closures and schedule changes. Collected data included 1,406 pieces of information that show the impact on museums over the last two years. During the COVID-19 pandemic, changes occurred: planned exhibitions (or rotating exhibitions) using their own collection were planned or held, instead of cancelling or postponing special exhibitions. More operations using SNS and online contents occurred.
Even now though many museums are free from requested or forced temporary closure, they must still take preventive measures against COVID-19, such as advance registration systems, visitor number limitations, and museum sterilization. It is predicted that exhibition operations will continue to be affected. TOBUNKEN will continue to collect information and analyze long-term impacts on museums.
The seminar conducted in person
Cover of Works and Essays on Arts of Ryusei 1920 (owned by TOBUNKEN collection)
Still Life, with its poem, 1918 (not existence, shown in Works and Essays on Arts of Ryusei)
KISHIDA Ryusei (1891-1929), a painter who was active in the Taisho period, studied in the Aoibashi Yōga-kenkyūsho (research institute of Western-style paintings), which was founded by KURODA Seiki. KISHIDA then presented his paintings mainly in Sōdo-sha, an artwork association founded by him and his fellows. KISHIDA pursued his unique painting style by actively accepting elaborate paintings by old masters such as Albrecht Dürer and Jan van Eyck, and then paid attention to Chinese and Japanese traditional paintings. This was in contrast to other contemporary Japanese paintings, which were strongly influenced by modern French paintings. The momentum to reevaluate Kishida’s paintings is now boosted. For example, the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto newly housed the entire personal collection of KISHIDA Ryusei in 2021.
YOSHIDA Akiko of the department discussed Kishida’s unusual expression of a human hand on his still life paintings in her presentation titled the Design of “Hand” by KISHIDA Ryusei – Focusing on His Still Life- at the seminar held on February 24th, 2022. A motif of hand was painted on Still Life (with Hand that has been erased) (painted in 1918, private collection.) However, the hand was later overpainted onto the screen, which makes it invisible to the naked eye. In the other case, a hand holding an apple was painted with a poem on the Still Life, with its poem (painted in 1918, destroyed in fire) in the same period. However, this artwork was lost forever. These two paintings, which cannot be seen in the way they were viewed when they were painted, raised arguments and attracted public attention in magazines and newspapers regarding their submission to the fifth Nika Art Exhibition (the former failed.) In her paper Eliminated Hand: Still Life Paintings by KISHIDA Ryusei of 1918 (published in Bijutsushi 183 vol.67 no.1, 2017), the presenter discussed the relationship with his art theory which was being developed by KISHIDA in the same period when he had painted these still life paintings, and the relationship with his artwork in 1916, when he had started painting still life in the earnest. In this presentation, she discussed the background as to why the “hand,” as a characteristic part of KISHIDA’s portraits, attracted attention as an independent motif and suggested that the review on KISHIDA Ryusei by WATANABE Kichiji / Kihciharu*, who was an aesthetician and had accepted German Aesthetics in that period as a pioneer, had influenced him.
The seminar was conducted in person at TOBUNKEN’s meeting room with sufficient precautions against the spread of COVID-19 infection. We invited Mr. TANAKA Atsushi (Director, OKAWA MUSEUM OF ART) as a commentator. We also had participants from outside of TOBUNKEN, including Ms. KOBAYASHI Mioko (Cultural Design Section, Culture, Commerce and Industry Division, Toshima City), Mr. TANAKA Jun’ichiro (The Museum of the Imperial Collections Sannomaru Shozokan), and Ms. YAMANASHI Emiko (Director, Chiba City Museum of Art.) The commentator provided information that impacted the core part of presentation, and active discussion occurred in the Q&A session. Hints were also provided on further research on his still life paintings in which unsolved questions remained, including the basic issues in the screen revision of Still Life (with Hand that has been Erased). The seminar was extremely fruitful.
*Watanabe’s first name can be spelled out two ways, and it is uncertain as to which one is correct.
Presentation in the seminar
Kumano Honjibutsu Mandala owned by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (before restoration)
Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) has been conducting the projects to restore the Japanese artworks located outside of Japan through the Cooperative Program for the Conservation of Japanese Art Objects Overseas for a long time. Since FY2021, we started restoring the Kumano Honjibutsu Mandala and Byōbu Screens Featuring the Thirty-six Poetesses owned by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Please refer to the article on our website: https://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/ekatudo/886806.html.
Kumano mandala is suijaku mandala (Shintō-buddhist syncretic mandala), picturing the Shintō and Buddhist deities enshrined in Kumano Sanzan (Kumano three main shrines) in Wakayama Prefecture, and representing their own religious vision. Around 50 kumano mandala have survived both in and outside of Japan. At the 7th Seminar held by the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems on January 25th, 2022, MAIZAWA Rei of the department reported on the Kumano Honjibutsu Mandala owned by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, and introduced its composition, design and style in detail. Several paintings are known to have the similar composition with hachiyōrenge (a design after lotus flower with eight petals) in the center and the deities inside its petals. The one owned by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts is considered to have been painted in the 14th century, at the end of the Kamakura period. It is precious, because it was painted at an earlier stage than the other kumano mandala.
Following MAIZAWA’s presentation, Dr. YAMAMOTO Satomi from Waseda University and Dr. ABE Mika from Nagoya University made presentations, respectively, titled Representation of Ashura in the Six Realms Paintings of Medieval Japan and A New Interpretation of the Six Realms Paintings in the Shōjuraikōji Temple with Rokudōshaku. The Rokudō-e（illustrations of Six Realms）owned by the Shōjuraikōji Temple in Shiga Prefecture is known as a masterpiece of the paintings describing Buddhist tales in the medieval age. It is considered to be made based on Ōjōyōshū (a Buddhist text which means ‘the essentials of rebirth in the pure land’) written by the Japanese Buddhist monk, Genshin, in 995, as a core but also on various texts and images. Dr. YAMAMOTO focused on the Ashura described on it. She pointed out that it is reflected on the image of Ashura described in battle paintings, war chronicles, as well as Rokudōshaku (preach text used in Buddhist ceremonies) made in the same period. Dr. ABE compared the contents of Rokudōshaku books with the composition and the expression of the Shōjuraikōji Temple painting in details and then suggested a possibility that this painting can be a ceremonial principal image of Nijūgozanmai, a ritual for rebirth in the pure land, paradise. Both suggested new interpretation of the foundation and history of the Shōjuraikōji Temple one. Therefore, the following Q&A session was very active.
These three presentations will be published in the Bijutsu Kenkyu for the coming fiscal year or after.
Online discussion
Information about exhibitions for Japanese art held abroad provided by the Sainsbury Institute (TOBUNKEN Research Collections database)
Exhibition Catalog, “Tokyo: Art & Photography,” Ashmolean Museum
On December 2, 2021, the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) held an annual meeting online with the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures in the United Kingdom about our collaborative project, “Shaping the Fundamentals of Research on Japanese Art.” We have been carrying out this joint project with the Sainsbury Institute since 2013. The meeting began with Professor Simon Kaner, Executive Director of the Sainsbury Institute, expressing his gratitude for the ongoing activities during the current challenging period of COVID-19. He also mentioned that this project had been highly valued as an important international collaborative project by the institute’s management board.
During the past year, in addition to the ongoing updating of databases, we started translating the historical articles from the annals of art where Japanese originals are already included in Nihon Bijutsu Nenkan (Yearbook). The translations are now published as “Art News Articles” on the TOBUNKEN website in a searchable format (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/nenshi-en). Please refer to the November 2021 monthly report (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/materials/ekatudo/927811.html). The English translations are currently available online for 2013–2015. More articles will be translated and published online in due course to disseminate information on Japanese art globally.
The Sainsbury Institute has contributed information on exhibitions of Japanese art held abroad to the TOBUNKEN Research Collections database (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/archives/?lang=en). As parts of our information sharing and research exchanges for the project, Ms. Miwako Hayashi Bitmead of the Sainsbury Institute has also contributed a review of the exhibition, “Tokyo: Art & Photography.” It is held at the Ashmolean Museum for our periodical, Bijutsu Kenkyū (The Journal of Art Studies), issue 436, to be published in March 2022. Her review provides us with insight into the exhibition as well as the situation outside of Japan, as opportunities to visit overseas art exhibitions have been reduced dramatically. It is highly recommended.
Recently, more activities can be conducted online, and we all have been taking advantage of these. Yet, presenting at a venue in person is still indispensable for researching artworks, delivering lectures, and exchanging ideas with a wide range of audiences. Though our plans are dependent on the situation, our intention is to resume the research exchanges that were conducted before the pandemic in the coming year or so.
Photographing
Investigation of coloring materials by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry
The Kuroda Memorial Hall houses and exhibits the paintings of KURODA Seiki and others. His oil paintings, the key collection, now count to 149, and belong to the Tokyo National Museum, of which the Kuroda Memorial Hall is currently a part of.
Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) photographed KURODA’s entire collection of oil paintings housed at the Hall, with high-resolution color, infrared and fluorescence imaging, from October through December 2021, in collaboration with the staff of the Tokyo National Museum. Furthermore, using X-ray fluorescence technologies, we analyzed the coloring materials used for the paintings: “Wisdom, Impression, Sentiment”, “Reading”, “Maiko Girl” and “Lakeside”.
KURODA Seiki studied oil paintings in France at the end of the 19th century. He learned the academic style, and acquired the Impressionist vision, weighing the sketches from outside. Following his return to Japan, he became a part of the mainstream Japanese modern painting world. His style changed with his position and circumstances – while in France, soon after returning to Japan, and after creating his niche in the Japanese art world. It is significant to have photographed his oil paintings with the same modern methods and lighting, including high-resolution color, infrared or fluorescence images that had never been taken before. We will uncover the techniques he used to actually paint these works, by comprehensively evaluating the information of brush touch, as highlighted by the high-resolution color imaging; the existence of drawings beneath and the color overlap as exposed by infrared and fluorescence imaging; and the details of the coloring materials used, as analyzed by the x-ray fluorescence imaging. The images photographed will prove to be essential in the research to understand the heart of the oil paintings by KURODA Seiki, who was an artistic leader of modern oil art in Japan.
Some images of his oil paintings have been made public on the TOBUNKEN website (https://www.tobunken.go.jp/kuroda/english/works.html), as well as in the reports including “Kuroda Seiki, Wisdom, Impression, Sentiment, Artwork Archive for Art Studies, volume I” (2002) and “Kuroda Seiki Lakeside, Artwork Archive for Art Studies, volume V” (2008). We plan to publish the outcomes of the latest photographing and research on our website.
Lecture by KOBAYASHI Tatsuro
Lecture by YASUNAGA Takuyo
The Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems conducted a public lecture titled “Look at Form, Read Form” on November 5th, 2021. The “Public Lecture” is conducted every autumn over the course of two days, and a wide range of audiences are invited to attend lectures presented by researchers on their work. However, this year, as with the preceding year, we shortened the period to one day with only two lecturers from our institute to follow COVID-19 prevention measures. The audience was limited to 30 people, and they were selected by raffle. In the venue, temperature checks were conducted and the speakers and audiences were requested to wear masks and sanitize their hands.
The following two lectures were conducted by members of our department: “Emergence and its Meaning of Amida Paintings All in Gold – Representation of Time Spirit in Transition Period” by KOBAYASHI Tatsuro, Head, Japanese and East Asian Art History Section; and “‘Hanshan and Shide’ Painted by Yosa Buson at Myōhōji Temple in Kagawa – Study for Restoration Utilizing Image Materials” by YASUNAGA Takuyo, Senior Researcher.
“KOBAYASHI discussed the Amida pictures of the Kamakura period—painted and plated in all gold—in light of the transition of the time spirit. Special emphasis was placed on how Amida emerged alongside the doctrine of original enlightenment (hongaku), which dominated Tendai Buddhism.” YASUNAGA introduced the ongoing restoration work of “Hanshan and Shide”—an Important Cultural Property owned by the Myōhōji Temple in Marugame city, Kagawa Prefecture—which was partially damaged by age. The old monochrome films shot decades ago by Tobunken have been used for this restoration with the high-definition images that Tobunken pictured recently.
Questionnaire survey responses from the audience show that 85% participants were “satisfied” or “generally satisfied” with the lecture.
Summary of the Seminar
Nearly 30 years have passed since Japan ratified the World Heritage Convention. Japan currently has 25 properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, including “Amami-Oshima Island, Tokunoshima Island, Northern part of Okinawa Island, and Iriomote Island” and “Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan”, which were recently added to the list in 2021. FUTAGAMI Yoko, Head, Cultural Properties Information Section, conducted a presentation about the recent international and domestic activities based on the World Heritage Convention, including the nomination, inscription, and protection.
Many nominated properties that were not recommended to inscribe on the World Heritage List by its advisory bodies, were eventually decided to be inscribed on the List at the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee conducted in Fuzhou, China, with both in-person and online attendees in July 2021. For example, “Frontiers of the Roman Empire – The Danube Limes (Western Segment)” nominated by Hungary and other states, was also decided to be inscribed on the list. This happened even though ICOMOS / International Council on Monuments and Sites, as an advisory body on cultural properties, concluded that it was “impossible to evaluate” because its boundary of the property was significantly modified soon before the session due to Hungary’s withdrawal from its nomination. Hungary noted discrepancies between the outcomes of the thematic study that ICOMOS performed in the past and their recent advice based on the mission triggered by its nomination, and the related states failed to reach agreements regarding how to deal with the advice provided. These hiccups may have influenced the Committee Member states to turn against ICOMOS. FUTAGAMI explained these issues related to the nominations to the World Heritage List, as well as the introduction of improvement measures, such as Preliminary Evaluation on the nomination dossiers at the extended 44th session of the World Heritage Committee.
In addition to the movements of the World Heritage Committee, since 2020, domestic discussions have been conducted in Japan at the Subdivision of World’s Cultural Heritage of the Council for Cultural Affairs regarding the nomination and protection of world heritage properties. FUTAGAMI presented information about its discussion points based on the materials published on the Internet.
Active discussions were conducted during this seminar on the challenges for domestic activities in the light of World Heritage nomination and protection. It provided a good opportunity for us to recognize the need for outreach on a wide range of related information.
“(Japanese)” at the end of the article is linked to its Japanese article.
Since 1936, the Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN) has annually issued the “Year Book of Japanese Art (the Year Book),” which covers activities in the art world in the given year in Japan. Although this book can be downloaded from “TOBUNKEN Publications repository > Yearbook of Japanese Art,” you can also directly search for specific information on the TOBUNKEN web database.
“Art News Articles database,” one of the databases constructed based on the Year Book, is a useful material that allows you to track movements in the art world through major exhibitions, art competitions, and events related to museums and cultural properties since 1936. We are happy to announce that the English version of “Art News Articles” with articles dating back to 2013, 2014, and 2015 were published. They were translated by Ms. Miwako Hayashi Bitmead, Japanese Arts Database Officer of the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC) in the United Kingdom. SISJAC and TOBUNKEN have conducted joint research since 2013 and this English publication was created with their cooperation. As the translation progresses, more data will be available.
The English version of this database will be helpful for disseminating information all over the world about the history of the movement in the Japanese art world until now. We believe that it can be also used as a vocabulary glossary for further outreach activities. Japanese and English versions of articles are mutually linked to ensure that each version can be easily referred. We are also planning to improve the database to mutually refer to both English and Japanese at a vocabulary level. We hope that you can find it useful and will use them regularly.
Exhibition catalogues: “Love, Fight, Feast “(left) and “Tosa and Sumiyoshi Schools II—The Development of the Yamato-e Painting Style and the Outstanding Characteristic of Each School” (right)
Lecture at Kuboso Memorial Museum of Arts, Izumi
International Symposium at the Rietberg Museum (YouTube distribution screen)
The exhibition “Tosa and Sumiyoshi Schools II—The Development of the Yamato-e Painting Style and the Outstanding Characteristic of Each School” was held from September 12th through November 7th, 2021 at the Kuboso Memorial Museum of Arts, Izumi, well known for its precious collection of Japanese and East Asian antiquities. The art works of the Tosa and Sumiyoshi Schools, from Tosa Mitsuyoshi’s work in the Momoyama Period till the modern period, were gathered and exhibited there. The exhibition was curated to highlight what each painter inherited and what each one innovated. During the exhibition, EMURA Tomoko from the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems gave a lecture titled “Sumiyoshi School Paintings Overseas: Examining Shutendōji Handscrolls in Grassi Museum of Ethnology in Leipzig” at a lecture meeting held on October 16th, with Mr. KAWADA Masayuki, the director of the museum. EMURA introduced the Cooperative Program for the Conservation of Japanese Art Objects Overseas by Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties (TOBUNKEN), as well as Japanese arts overseas. She discussed Sumiyoshi Hiroyuki’s Shuten-dōji handscrolls, considered to be painted in 1786. This exhibition also featured the Shuten-dōji handscrolls painted by Hiroyuki’s son, Sumiyoshi Hironao (owned by Nezu Museum), following his father’s works. EMURA clarified the contrast between their works.
In the same month, on October 23rd, EMURA delivered a keynote lecture titled “A Great Tale of Exterminating Ogres: Shuten-dōji Handscrolls of GRASSI Museum für Völkerkunde zu Leipzig” at an international symposium marking the occasion of the special exhibition “Love, Fight, Feast – The World of Japanese Narrative Art,” held at the Rietberg Museum in Switzerland from September 10th to December 5th, 2021. The exhibition shows Japanese narrative scrolls owned by European museums. In her lecture, she explained the overall contents of Sumiyoshi Hiroyuki’s Shuten-dōji handscrolls and their characteristics as they were first exhibited there. This symposium was held online, connecting the museum in Zurich with Tokyo, Dublin (Ireland) and New York (USA), and broadcasted via the Internet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36FC6IOS_o0&t=1160s
It was unfortunate that we could not gather in person at the same venue due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it was still a precious opportunity to discuss with many researchers and to exchange opinions. EMURA plans to publish her research about Sumiyoshi Hiroyuki’s Shuten-dōji handscrolls, which she talked about in her lecture, as an article in the Bijutsu Kenkyu (the Journal of Art Studies), No. 453.
SHIMAZAKI Kiyomi in a classroom; photo taken in 1950s.
He taught arts as an elementary school teacher, while playing a key role in Sōzō Biiku Kyōkai
Presentation at the seminar
Have you ever heard about an organization called “Sōzō Biiku Kyōkai”? This private organization was founded in 1952 to pursue new art education that respects and nurtures children’s individual personalities. Artists such as KITAGAWA Tamiji and EI-Q, and the art critic KUBO Sadajiro played key roles in its founding. These educational activities have grown and expanded, and have resulted in the establishment of the organization’s branches all over Japan. Thus, these activities have had a huge impact on post-war art education in Japan.
Ms. NAKAMURA Maki (part-time employee, Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Cultural History and temporary staff, Tokyo Keizai University Historical Data Office) was invited by the Department of Art Research, Archives and Information Systems to the seminar held on September 24th, 2021 on the materials left behind by SHIMAZAKI Kiyomi (1923-2015). SHIMAZAKI was an art educator and served as the Bureau Chief of the Sōzō Biiku Kyōkai. Ms. NAKAMURA gave a presentation titled “Art Education in Japan after World War II, tracked with the activity records of the ‘Sōzō Biiku Kyōkai’ – referring to the materials left by SHIMAZAKI Kiyomi.” She had interviewed SHIMAZAKI in the past, and after his death, has been engaged in organizing and studying the large amount of materials he had left behind. She explained that this organization has made immense contributions, not only by helping art education to evolve, but also by supporting artists, popularizing print arts, and nurturing art collectors.
In the discussion following her presentation, Dr. KANEKO Kazuo, Professor Emeritus at Ibaraki University, delivered a commentary on the positioning of the Sōzō Biiku Kyōkai in post-war art education in Japan. Following this, participants from the institute and other facilities actively discussed how to conserve and utilize the materials of SHIMAZAKI Kiyomi. In the discussion, we also recognized the difficult situation related to the art education archives, for example, the fact that no institute so far has accepted these materials permanently.
Ms. NAKAMURA brought some of the actual materials to the seminar and participants had an opportunity to see them in person. We hope that this seminar provided the participants an opportunity to understand the importance of these materials.
